Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools (LAB) is a network of open enrollment, college-prep, public charter schools. LAB’s mission is to prepare high-need students with the academic foundation, digital literacy, and leadership skills necessary to succeed in college and careers. LAB’s combines a rigorous college preparatory curriculum and culture of high expectations with a focus on personalized learning. LAB is especially accommodating of special education students, English Language Learners, and students behind grade level. LAB’s success is built on a culture of rigor and excellence with the following elements:

Uniformly high expectations—with the ultimate goal of college graduation and career success—to which families, students, and teachers alike are held;
Optimized use of every minute of the school day together with a longer school day and year;
Individualized support and learning opportunities for all students; and
Highly developed operational systems that enable teachers to focus on instruction.

LAB is seeking a Director of School Operations to support non-academic operations at the school.

Position Description

The Director of School Operations at LAB supports the Executive Director with all non-academic operations at the school, including the school’s business operations, finances, and compliance with its charter and all laws and regulations. He/she is responsible for the school’s budget, accounting, and financial reporting; enrollment and student records; human resources, payroll, and credential management; meals programs and receipts; the physical facility; health services; information technology; procurement; security and school safety programs; regulatory compliance; supervising the non-academic staff at the school; and relationships with the NYCDOE and NYSED.

Responsibilities

Financial transactions and operations: Managing daily financial and business activities; ensuring timely and accurate bookkeeping and reconciliations; using accounting/financial policies and procedures; ensuring proper cash management; ensuring proper management of accounts receivable and payable, with timely processing of billings and payments; ensuring proper asset management, compliance with GAAP standards, and adherence to LAB’s budget; collecting public revenues; preparing financial statements and variance analyses; managing and ensuring compliance with grants; coordinating with the Executive Director to prepare the school budget; coordinating to ensure that staff adhere to the budget; ensuring that all reports are submitted accurately and on time; and managing procurement.
Enrollment and funding: Ensuring timely and proper enrollment and attendance reporting to the state and timely and accurate collection of public funds; maintaining the school’s waiting list and enrolling students in compliance with charter law and regulations; maintaining student records; and ensuring compliance with student confidentiality laws.
External reporting and compliance: Ensuring compliance with state and federal regulations; ensuring all required financial reports are submitted in a timely and accurate manner; monitoring management/lease/charter agreements, with particular attention to financial reporting requirements; and maintaining effective working relationship with the authorizer, the state, and other regulatory and oversight agencies.
Human resources: Administering personnel matters, including (through vendors) payroll, benefits, and COBRA; properly implementing school policies and procedures relating to HR; providing appropriate information and assistance to staff regarding personnel matters and benefits; providing effective support and advice to the administrative team on personnel and HR issues; ensuring that all staff hold credentials required by law and pass background checks; preparing and maintaining legal personnel-related documentation (including employment statements of hire, disciplinary procedures, and terminations of employment); maintaining up-to-date personnel files; assisting with salary budget planning and staffing requirements; and effectively coordinating with the School Director and Executive Director as needed.
Facility: Managing the school’s custodial staff and facility, including repairs and maintenance.
Meals: Overseeing LAB’s meal programs; managing food service vendor and staff; and overseeing free and reduced-price lunch eligibility and collection of meal payments.
Safety and health services: Managing the school nurse and ensuring compliance with all education laws affecting the health and safety of students; ensuring that students receive all required immunizations and health assessments, that proper student health records are maintained, and that staff are trained in emergency medical procedures.
Information technology: Ensuring LAB’s information systems are fully functioning.

Qualifications

We are looking for someone sharp, driven, and kind. The following qualities are also must-haves:

Alignment with values and philosophy: Passion for closing the achievement gap in public education and a belief that a highly structured environment is essential for learning; a commitment to working with underserved, urban youth; and an unwavering commitment to and belief in the mission of LAB, including our values and educational model.
Entrepreneurial spirit: A track record of being a resourceful and creative self-starter in tackling challenges, and of questioning conventional wisdom; an openness to change, a willingness to problem-solve, and an interest in developing new ideas and programs.
Integrity: Embodying the honesty and trustworthiness that LAB expects of all members of its community, particularly those serving as visible role models for others.

Candidates must have a Bachelor’s degree and at least five years of urban and/or charter school operations experience. An ideal candidate for this position:

Demonstrates the belief that every student can work hard, excel academically, and graduate from college and leads in a way that reflects LAB’s mission and values;
Demonstrates a commitment to urban school leadership and management.
Manages time and resources effectively, prioritizing efforts according to organizational goals;
Proactively develops contingency plans in advance of potential or unforeseen circumstances;
Delegates decision-making and authority in an effective manner;
Multi-tasks and balances detailed steps with strategy to ensure successful project completion.
Holds him/herself and others accountable for ensuring high achievement for every student;
Possesses strong written and verbal communication skills, and a leads through communication and presence;
Exhibits willingness to engage in difficult conversations and make hard decisions;
Takes initiative, goes above and beyond typical expectations, and demonstrates relentless drive and determination to achieve exceptional outcomes and results;
Follows through on commitments and promises with an appropriate sense of urgency;
Exhibits resilience in overcoming setbacks and remains constructive despite resistance or failure; demonstrates tenacity; supports perseverance in others;
Demonstrates flexibility and adjusts plans to achieve intended outcomes;
Focuses on results and how they are achieved; does not confuse effort with results;
Identifies, analyzes and prioritizes complex problems and key issues;
Gathers information from multiple relevant sources and stakeholders when problem-solving;
Anticipates and identifies problems in a timely manner; makes timely decisions, using intuition as well as data in the face of ambiguity;
Establishes decision-making processes, communicating how decisions will be made and who has input, and ensuring that decisions are made by those best suited to make them;
Demonstrates the ability to evaluate results and use data to drive decision-making. Considers both the longer-term and unintended consequences of potential decisions;
Makes and stands by decisions that benefit the school and its students; shares the rationale for decisions, particularly when consensus cannot be reached;
Takes responsibility for behavior, mistakes, and results, learns from successes and failures, and teaches others to do the same;
Continuously and humbly seeks opportunities for personal and organizational improvement; proactively solicits and willingly accepts assistance;
Promotes and contributes to a culture of sharing effective practices;
Demonstrates professionalism in diverse situations;
Accurately reads group dynamics to maximize individual strengths;
Exhibits confidence, competence and a sense of possibility, including when under pressure.

How to apply

Please submit a resume and cover letter to Eric Tucker, Executive Director at eric@brooklynlaboratoryschool.org